Rod-intercepting means in a coil-forming chamber

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a rodmill in which nonconcentric convolutions of continuous rod deposited on a conveyor or concentric convolutions delivered directly by a laying head are collected in coil formation in a chamber. The chamber (often referred to in the industry as a reforming chamber or tub) includes novel mechanism in the form of fingers which may be moved simultaneously into the upper part of the chamber to intercept the leading rod convolutions coming from the next billet for a sufficient time to permit the previously formed coil to be pushed laterally out of the lower part of the chamber. As soon as the previous coil has been removed, the fingers are retracted to allow the temporarily arrested rings to fall to the floor of the chamber to be followed by the remaining convolutions of the rod as they are continuously delivered by the conveyor or laying head to the chamber. Alternatively, the fingers may be actuated to intercept the falling convolutions at any intermediate position to provide an opportunity to cut the rod, thereby to subdivide the rod into two or more coils.

United States Patent [72] inventor Martln Gllvar Westboro, Mass. [2]] Appl. No. 846,864 [22] Filed Aug. 1, 1969 [45] Patented Nov. 9, 197] [73] Assignee Morgan Construction Company Worcester, Mass.

[54] ROD-INTERCEPTING MEANS IN A COIL- FORMING CHAMBER 7 Claims, 5 Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl 242/81, 242/84 [5 1] Int. Cl B65h 54/76 [50] Field ofSearch 242/82, 83, 84, 79, 81

[ 56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,929,574 3/l960 Henning 242/82 3,110,452 ll/l963 Burr etal 242/82 Primary Examiner-Stanley N. Gilreath Assislanr Examiner-Milton Gerstein AltorneyChittick, Pfund, Birch, Samuels & Gauthier ABSTRACT: The invention relates to a rodmill in which nonconcentric convolutions of continuous rod deposited on a conveyor or concentric convolutions delivered directly by a laying head are collected in coil formation in a chamber. The chamber (often referred to in the industry as a reforming chamber or tub) includes novel mechanism in the form of fingers which may be moved simultaneously into the upper part of the chamber to intercept the leading rod convolutions coming from the next billet for a sufficient time to permit the previously formed coil to be pushed laterally out of the lower part of the chamber. As soon as the previous coil has been removed, the fingers are retracted to allow the temporarily arrested rings to fall to the floor of the chamber to be followed by the remaining convolutions of the rod as they are continuously delivered by the conveyor or laying head to the chamber. Alternatively, the fingers may be actuated to intereept the falling convolutions at any intermediate position to provide an opportunity to cut the rod, thereby to subdivide the rod into two or more coils.

PAIENTEUunv 9mm SHEET 1 OF 3 687 8463 lllll ll 3 ATTORNEYS PATENTEDunv 9 l97l SHEET 2 BF 3 lNVENT0R=' MARTIN GILVAR, BY 4944', fM ag m ATTORNEYS BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the steel industry, it is now common practice in the rolling of rod from billets to deliver the rolled rod from the last roll stand to a conventional laying head which places the rod in nonconcentric overlapping convolutions or rings on a moving conveyor. The rings while on the conveyor may be subjected to controlled cooling operations to produce the required metallurgical characteristics in the finished rod.

On leaving the conveyor, the rings are delivered in rapid succession to the open upper end of a collecting chamber in whichthe rod rings falling gravitationally are assembled into a suitable coil. Alternatively, and particularly in the rolling of nonferrous rod, the rings may be delivered directly to the coilforming chamber from a laying head directly thereabove. Here, also, the leading rings of the next billet must be intercepted to give time for removal from the chamber of the previously formed coil.

The size and weight of the coil, of course, depends upon the size of the billet from which the rod was rolled. Since the last ring of one coil is only a short distance ahead of'the first ring of the next on the conveyor or coming from the laying head, it is necessary to provide some means for temporarily stopping or preventing the descent of the first rings of the next coil until the previously formed coil at the bottom of the collecting chamber can be removed therefrom.

This invention is, therefore, particularly concerned with a novel mechanism in the form of a plurality of specially shaped fingers which may be simultaneously moved inwardly from the circular wall of the coil-forming chamber a sufficient distance to intercept the leading rings of the next coil as they are delivered to the chamber from the conveyor or the laying head. These fingers remain in inward position until the previously formed coil has been removed from the lower part of the chamber after which the fingers are retracted outwardly of the chamber wall permitting the intercepted rings to fall to the bottom of the chamber. All following rings delivered by the conveyor or laying head then build up on the bottom rings until the next coil has been completed.

As soon as the last rod ring formed from one billet has dropped into the chamber, a control mechanism at the top of the chamber causes the fingers to be actuated to move to inward position where they will be ready to intercept the first rings of the next billet to provide time for removal of the coil just previously assembled at the bottom of the chamber.

The fingers may also be actuated to intercept descending rod rings at some selected intermediate time in the delivery of rings to the chamber. The rod may then be severed at the intercepting finger position to produce a coil therebelow of a fractional weight of the billet. For example, if a 3,000 lb. billet were being rolled, the fingers could be moved inwardly when 1,500 lbs. of rod had been delivered to the chamber. The rod could then be cut at the intercepted position to produce a 1,500 lb. first coil and thereafter upon removal of the first coil and withdrawal of the fingers, a second coil of 1,500 lbs. would be produced.

These steps of operation are well understood and the features herein described and claimed that are believed to be new relate principally to the finger construction and the means for actuating the fingers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I shows in side elevation part of a conveyor delivering rod rings to a reforming chamber. The coil-forming chamber and the finger mechanism are shown in vertical section along with discharging mechanism at the lower portion.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of the upper portion of the reforming chamber showing the finger-actuating mechanisms in more detail. The chamber is broken away in part.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged plan view of FIG. 1 with the rod rings and details of the conveyor omitted for clarity.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged vertical section taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring first to FIG. 1, there is shown a conveyor 2 carrying thereon a succession of continuous nonconcentric rod 0 rings 4. As these rings, or convolutions, approach the end of the conveyor, they may be assisted in maintaining a generally horizontal dropoff position through the use of overlying feed chain 6.

The rings on leaving conveyor 2 drop into the top end of a coil-forming chamber 8. The initial descent of the rings is illustrated at 4a. These first rings are shown as being intercepted by a plurality of fingers 10 which extend inwardly through openings 14 in the upper wall 12.

The rings of the preceding billet have been collected at the bottom of chamber 8 to form a complete coil 16. This coil rests on a-bottom support 18. A mandrel 20 with its upper tapered end well above fingers 10 assists in locating properly the descending rod rings. When the coil 16 has been completely assembled, the mandrel 20 is moved downwardly by means not shown, far enough to clear the bottom of coil 16. A pusher 22 is then actuated to force coil 16 to a conveyor or delay station position indicated at 160.

Immediately upon the removal of coil 16 from chamber 8, the mandrel 20 is moved upwardly to the position shown in FIG. 1. Fingers 10 are then withdrawn outwardly of the chamber 8 permitting the temporarily arrested rings 40 to drop freely and squarely the full length of chamber 8 to the bottom 18. The following rings delivered by conveyor 2 then fall seriatim into the chamber 8 and, guided by the mandrel 20, buildup vertically to form the next coil 16.

Instead of delivering the rod rings to'the chamber by the conveyor shown in FIG. 1, the rings may be dropped directly therein in known manner by a conventional laying head (not shown) positioned over the coil-forming chamber. A laying head and coil-forming chamber is shown gan US. Pat. No. 3,204,940.

All that has been described heretofore is old in the art with the exception of the construction and actuation of the fingers 10. These fingers and their actuating mechanisms will now be described in more detail.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, the chamber has been generally indicated at 8 and the upper part of the chamber at 12. This part 12 at its top carries supports 26 on which is mounted a crosswise extending rod 28 from which depends a flag 30. This flag is engaged by the rod rings leaving the conveyor to assume the dotted line position shown in FIGS. I and 2. The partial rotation of rod 28 by movement of flag 30 causes actuation of a switch which in turn through suitable mechanisms to be described causes appropriate movement of the fingers'IO.

In the normal situation, as the rod rings are entering the top of the chamber 8, and flag 30 is correspondingly pushed to the ring as viewed in FIGS. 1 and 2, fingers 10 will be retracted and the rings guided by mandrel 20 will drop the full length of the chamber to the bottom 18 to be collected thereon and built up into the coil 16. As soon as the last rod ring has dropped into chamber 8, the flag 30 will resume its vertical position, thereby to cause actuation of the electrical means which puts the finger-moving mechanism into operation. This mechanism will now be explained.

As can be seen best in FIGS. 3 and 4, a rotary oil hydraulic actuator 32 is fixedly mounted on the upper end of a shaft 34. The shaft is supported in a lower bearing 36 and an upper bearing 38. Bearing 36 is carried by a circumferentially extending supporting plate 37. Actuation of the hydraulic actuator 32 causes shaft 34 to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise in accord with the position of any suitably located ring-sensing device such as, for example, flag 30. A spur gear 40 is mounted on shaft 34 and keyed thereto by key 42. Gear 40 has in the patent to Moran upper cylindrical collar 44 on which is clamped as at 46 the outer extension of one of the fingers l0. As can be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, this finger 10 extends through its opening 14 in upper wall 12 of chamber 8.

As shown in FIG. 3, all of the eight fingers 10 are identical in configuration. The number of fingers could be more or less according to size of the chamber and rod rings. The part of each finger that moves in and out of the chamber is a circular segment having its center at the axis of the shaft on which it turns.

The fingers 10 are moved in and out in unison and this is accomplished in the following manner. The actuator 32, as previously explained, is mounted on shaft 34. This shaft also carries its finger 10 which is mounted on the sleeve 44 of gear 40. The other seven fingers are mounted on different type shafts 52 which are illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 5. Each of the shafts 52 is nonrotatably mounted in lower and upper supports 37 and 49. A keeper 51 attached to support 49 holds shaft 52 against vertical and rotary movement. The shafts 52, through bearings 53 and 54, support thereon rotatably spur gears 55. Each gear 55 has an upwardly extending collar 56 on which is clamped as at 58 the outer end of its finger 10.

The one shaft 34 and the other shafts 52 have their axes vertical and parallel and located in circular path. The gear 40 and gears 55 are all the same size. Surrounding and engaging all gears is an internal ring gear 60. This ring gear is mounted for easy rotation in a circular bearing 62 with antifriction elements 64 and 65 therebetween. Bearing 62 is bolted as shown in FIGS. 4 and to the circumferentially extending supporting plate 37 mounted about the periphery of wall 12. A protective and dirt-excluding cover 68 is mounted on the top of ring gear 60 with its outer portion overhanging the bearing elements 62 and 64.

From the foregoing description, it will now be seen that whenever shaft 34 is rotated by actuator 32, the associated gear 40 will cause corresponding movement of ring gear 60 which in turn causes rotation of all spur gears 54 to an extent exactly matching the rotation of gear 40. In this way, all of the fingers are caused to move simultaneously and equally in or out of the chamber 12 to meet the requirements dictated by the position of flag 30, or such other control devices as may be used to control the start of operation of actuator 32. Limit switches 69 and 70 (see FIG. 3) act to stop operation of actuator 32 thereby to control the extent of the rotation of gear 60.

In order to provide initial settings for all of the gears 40 and 55, it has been found convenient to include means for controlling the angular setting of actuator 32 and associated gear 40. This is accomplished by the mechanism most plainly shown in FIG. 3 in which an arm 72 is bolted to the top of actuator 32 and connected by turnbuckle 74 to an extension 76 which is part of wall 12. Adjustment of turnbuckle 74 obviously H causes angular movement of arm 72 with a corresponding change in the setting of gear 40 and associated finger 10. All other gears 55 and their fingers 10 are shifted to correspond.

In the form shown, the rotation of the one shaft 34 is transmitted to all of the other gears 55 by means of the surrounding ring gear 60. It is believed clear, however, that other equivalent means which it is not thought necessary to illustrate, could be substituted for the gearing herein described. For example, the spur gears could be replaced by sprockets of the type used on bicycles, and the sprockets could be connected for simultaneous rotation by a suitable chain extending about their exteriors. Another alternative would be to substitute small drums for the spur gears and connect the same by a continuous cable which would have two or three turns around drum. This latter construction is not, however, considered as satisfactory as a gearing arrangement because of the possibility of slippage. Likewise, in the event that one actuator could not handle the load involved, two or more actuators could be mounted on other shafts in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 4. All of the actuators would be electrically controlled to function simultaneously.

Each finger 10 may have a replaceable wear insert 78 included in its upper surface as the friction between fingers l0 and the rod rings when the fingers are being withdrawn is considerable.

Also, when the fingers are used to intercept rings at the intermediate part of a coil, it is preferable that the leading ends of the fingers be sharpened in a horizontal direction to minimize the possibility of a finger engaging the side of a ring and forcing it inwardly to create an out of round condition.

In the light of the above explanation of the invention, other modifications within the scope of the claims will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A chamber adapted to receive a falling succession of continuous rod rings delivered thereto by a conveyor or laying head, said chamber having means intermediate its vertical dimension for arresting temporarily the descent of said rings within said chamber, said arresting means comprising a plurality of curved fingers movable in a circular path in a horizontal plane into said chamber through apertures in the chamber wall to arrest rings falling thereon and movable out of said chamber to the extent necessary to release said previously arrested rings, said fingers having extensions thereof outside said chamber wall mounted on parallel pivots to pennit said circular movement of said fingers thereabout, that portion of each finger entering said chamber being curved in the form of a segment of a circle having its center at its said pivot, means for simultaneously causing movement of said fingers inwardly and outwardly of said chamber comprising a gear attached to each extension and rotatable about its pivot, all said gears being engaged by a surrounding rotatably movable element whereby movement of any of said gears or element will cause corresponding rotation of all other gears and identical movement of the related fingers.

2. The construction as set forth in claim 1, said means for rotating said one gear comprising a rotary oil hydraulic actuator.

3. The construction as set forth in claim 1, said chamber having mounted therein a vertically movable mandrel for guiding the said descending rings to form a proper rod coil, the upper end of said mandrel when in uppermost position being above the plane of said fingers for insuring positioning of said rod rings on said fingers when said fingers are in inward position within said chamber.

4. A chamber adapted to receive a falling succession of continuous rod rings delivered thereto by a conveyor or laying head, said chamber having means intermediate its vertical dimension for arresting temporarily the descent of said rings within said chamber, said arresting means comprising a plurality of curved fingers movable in a circular path in a horizontal plane into said chamber through apertures in said chamber wall to arrest rings falling thereon and movable out of said chamber to the extent necessary to release said previously arrested rings, said fingers having extensions thereof outside said chamber wall mounted on parallel pivots to permit said circular movement of said fingers thereabout, a mandrel movable from an up position above said fingers to a down position below said chamber, means causing said fingers to be moved outwardly of said chamber only when said mandrel is in up position whereby previously intercepted rod rings falling from said withdrawn fingers will be guided by said mandrel to fall freely and squarely within said chamber, and means for moving said fingers inwardly of said chamber after the last descending rod ring ofa billet has passed the level of said fingers to intercept the first rod ring of the next billet.

5. The construction as set forth in claim 4, said finger-moving means comprising a spur gear connected to each said finger and a ring gear engaging all of said spur gears whereby all gears and fingers move simultaneously.

6. A chamber having upper and lower parts adapted to receive a falling succession of continuous rod rings delivered thereto by a conveyor or laying head, the upper part of said chamber including a ring-containing wall, the lower part of said chamber being connected to said upper part and having an opening at one side whereby a collected coil of rod rings may be moved laterally therefrom, said upper part of said chamber having means intermediate the vertical dimension of said ring-containing wall for arresting temporarily the descent of said rings within said upper part, said arresting means comprising a plurality of fingers circularly curved along their longitudinal dimension in a horizontal plane and movable axially in a circular path in a horizontal plane into said chamber through individual apertures in the wall of said upper part to arrest rings falling thereon and movable axially out of said upper part of said chamber to the extent necessary to release said previously arrested rings, said curved fingers having radially disposed extensions thereof outside said wall mounted on parallel pivots to permit said circular movement of said fingers thereabout, and means simultaneously causing said fingers to be moved first in one direction inwardly of said chamber and thereafter in the opposite direction out of said chamber.

7. The construction as set forth in claim 6, said chamber having mounted therein a vertically movable mandrel for guiding the said descending rings to form a proper rod coil, the upper end of said mandrel when in uppermost position being above the plane of said fingers for insuring positioning of said rod rings on said fingers when said fingers are in inward position within said chamber. 

1. A chamber adapted to receive a falling succession of continuous rod rings delivered thereto by a conveyor or laying head, said chamber having means intermediate its vertical dimension for arresting temporarily the descent of said rings within said chamber, said arresting means comprising a plurality of curved fingers movable in a circular path in a horizontal plane into said chamber through apertures in the chamber wall to arrest rings falling thereon and movable out of said chamber to the extent necessary to release said previously arrested rings, said fingers having extensions thereof outside said chamber wall mounted on parallel pivots to permit said circular movement of said fingers thereabout, that portion of each finger entering said chamber being curved in the form of a segment of a circle having its center at its said pivot, means for simultaneously causing movement of said fingers inwardly and outwardly of said chamber comprising a gear attached to each extension and rotatable about its pivot, all said gears being engaged by a surrounding rotatably movable element whereby movement of any of said gears or element will cause corresponding rotation of all other gears and identical movement of the related fingers.
 2. The construction as set forth in claim 1, said means for rotating said one gear comprising a rotary oil hydraulic actuator.
 3. The construction as set forth in claim 1, said chamber having mounted therein a vertically movable mandrel for guiding the said descending rings to form a proper rod coil, the upper end of said mandrel when in uppermost position being above the plane of said fingers for insuring positioning of said rod rings on said fingers when said fingers are in inward position within said chamber.
 4. A chamber adapted to receive a falling succession of continuous rod rings delivered thereto by a conveyor or laying head, said chamber having means intermediate its vertical dimension for arresting temporarily the descent of said rings within said chamber, said arresting means comprising a plurality of curved fingers movable in a circular path in a horizontal plane into said chamber through apertures in said chamber wall to arrest rings falling thereon and movable out of said chamber to the extent necessary to release said previously arrested rings, said fingers having extensions thereof outside said chamber wall mounted on parallel pivots to permit said circular movement of said fingers thereabout, a mandrel movable from an up position above said fingers to a down position below said chamber, means causing said fingers to be moved outwardly of said chamber only when said mandrel is in up position whereby previously intercepted rod rings falling from said withdrawn fingers will be guided by said mandrel to fall freely and squarely within said chamber, and means for moving said fingers inwardly of said chamber after the last descending rod ring of a billet has passed the level of said fingers to intercept the first rod ring of the next billet.
 5. The construction as set forth in claim 4, said finger-moving means comprising a spur gear connected to each said finger and a ring gear engaging all of said spur gears whereby all gears and fingers move simultaneously.
 6. A chamber having upper and lower parts adapted to receive a falling succession of continuous rod rings delivered thereto by a conveyor or laying head, the upper part of said chamber including a ring-containing wall, the lower part of said chamber being connected to said upper part and having an opening at one side whereby a collected coil of rod rings may be moved laterally therefrom, said upper part of said chamber having means intermediate the vertical dimension of said ring-containing wall for arresting temporarily the descent of said rings within said upper part, said arresting means comprising a plurality of fingers circularly curved along their longitudinal dimension in a horizontal plane and movable axially in a circular path in a horizontal plane into said chamber through individual apertures in the wall of said upper part to arrest rings falling thereon and movable axially out of said upper part of said chamber to the extent necessary to release said previously arrested rings, said curved fingers having radially disposed extensions thereof outside said wall mounted on parallel pivots to permit said circular movement of said fingers thereabout, and means simultaneously causing said fingers to be moved first in one direction inwardly of said chamber and thereafter in the opposite direction out of said chamber.
 7. The construction as set forth in claim 6, said chamber having mounted therein a vertically movable mandrel for guiding the said descending rings to form a proper rod coil, the upper end of said mandrel when in uppermost position being above the plane of said fingers for insuring positioning of said rod rings on said fingers when said fingers are in inward position within said chamber. 